We’re excited and honored by this opportunity to continue what we have started here in Denver. We have a locker room full of dedicated players and staff, led by head coach Michael Malone, who look forward to winning in this great city for years to come. As a staff we would like to thank Josh and the entire Kroenke family for their continued support; we are unbelievably fortunate to work for such committed ownership.

Although the Nuggets own a 16-25 record entering Wednesday night's meeting with the Oklahoma City Thunder and haven't recorded a winning season since the 2012-13 campaign, Connelly has compiled strong assets over the past few seasons, as CBS Sports' Matt Moore explained:

Hardwood Paroxysm @HPbasketball

Thoughts on the Nuggets’ extension of Connelly: He’s done such a great job with draft/extensions and the hiring of Malone, it’s solid.

As Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski noted, Connelly helped uncover a diamond in the rough when he acquired Jusuf Nurkic along with Gary Harris in a 2014 draft-day trade. Nurkic was subsequently named to the NBA's All-Rookie Second Team last season after averaging 6.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in just under 18 minutes per game.

Harris, meanwhile, has taken steps forward following a disappointing rookie season. Now a member of Denver's starting lineup, Harris is averaging 11.1 points and a steal while shooting 45.8 percent from the field and 36.5 percent from three-point range in his second year out of Michigan State.

Nikola Jokic, Denver's 2014 second-round pick, has also excelled for the Nuggets. After signing a multi-year deal with Denver over the summer, Jokic is averaging 8.7 points and 5.5 rebounds and has posted a team-best 21.4 player efficiency rating, per Basketball-Reference.com.

More recently, Connelly was instrumental in selecting Emmanuel Mudiay with the seventh pick in the 2015 draft, as well as building up Denver's stockpile of future picks.

"Over the past few years Tim, Arturas, and the rest of our front office staff have worked tirelessly in reshaping our roster and our entire organizational vision for the future," Nuggets president Josh Kroenke said in the statement. "Whether through the draft, trades, or free agency, we have an excellent mix of players and are extremely well positioned moving forward."

Protected 1-5 and 15-30 in 2016; Protected 1-5 in 2017 and 2018; Unprotected in 2019

2016 1st-round pick from Portland

Lottery protected in 2016 and 2017; Conveys less favorable of its own and Sacramento's 2018 2nd-rounder if it doesn't convey by 2017

2016 1st-round pick from New York

Denver retains swap rights

2018 2nd-round pick from Golden State

None

Source: RealGM.com

Connelly also nabbed the unsung Will Barton alongside Portland's protected lottery pick. Firmly in the Most Improved Player conversation, Barton is averaging a career-best 15.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists while knocking down 38.9 percent of his threes as a lightning rod off the bench.

Denver still has some work to do as it seeks to crack the Western Conference playoff picture for the first time since 2013, but Connelly's ability to acquire young talent and build through the draft has the Nuggets on the right track.

With a few more additions this summer, when the salary cap spikes, Denver could soon be one of the West's trendier up-and-coming teams.